“Meta used AI to tag workers who took leave to be laid off, lawsuit claims”, 15 July 2026

Dozens of Meta employees have sued the social media company over claims that it used artificial intelligence tools to tag workers for mass layoffs. The workers allege that those AI tools targeted them after they asked for protected or maternity leave or disability accommodation…

The plaintiffs are seeking a preliminary court ruling to stop Meta from finalizing the layoffs while they pursue their ​claims, along with relief that could include reinstatement, back pay, lost equity, benefits and other damages…

The lawsuit against Meta alleges that the company’s AI tools gather data on employees’ performance rankings, productivity and other metrics, and that those inputs do not exist when workers are on medical or family leave. For people with disabilities, those metrics might be reduced.

“The result was that employees who took protected leaves were disproportionately selected for layoff, based on scoring that not only failed to account for their protected leaves, but in effect penalized the employees for exercising their legal rights to these leaves,” reads the complaint…

A Meta spokesperson disputed the allegations. “These claims lack merit and are not based on facts,” he said in an email to the Guardian. “Workforce management and organizational decisions were and are made by people, not AI.”